Dark Wonderland
by MarchHatter
Summary: Kurt did't know what was happening when he followed a strange boy, with a mischievous grin down a rabbit hole, but he did know that nothing had been the same since. IN a land where everything is what it isn't and isn't what it is, Kurt must keep his bearings and play the game right, or the price of losing might be higher than he ever thought. Klaine pair. T for safety. Some OCs
1. Chapter 1: Down the Rabbit Hole

A/N: Hi, I'm MarchHatter and this is a bit of a weird fic. Its set in Alice in Wonderland with a bit of a twist. I hope you like it, and please review!  
Disclaimer: I do not own Glee, Alice in Wonderland, or any of the characters from those franchises.

Chapter 1: Down the Rabbit Hole

Kurt sighed as he twisted his finger around one of the ribbons in little Anna's hair. It was so boring here. He stared blankly into space as eight year olds ran around his legs. The park around him was beautiful, but filled with little children. He was at his cousin, Lilly's, birthday party, which would be fun except that Lilly was eight. He was the only seventeen year old there. Or so he thought, for across the small park a figure had caught his attention. A boy, tall, with brown hair, green eyes and a face with a slight semblance to a meerkat. He was smiling mischievously and raised a finger to beckon Kurt forward. Kurt made his was across the party, and wove through the trees towards the mysterious figure.

"Hey!" Kurt called, The other boy turned.

"Hello." He replied, walking backwards.

"Who are you?"

"You can call me the Knave." He replied, smirking. "I want to show you something, Alice."

"I'm Kurt." Kurt clarified. "And what is it?"

"You'll just have to come see." With that the Knave took off. Kurt ran behind him, calling for him to slow down, but all of a sudden he wasn't there. Kurt stood at the base of a massive oak tree, looking for this mysterious Knave. He heard the Knave's voice call out, "In here Alice!" He sounded close; almost like he was on top of Kurt. Looking around at the tree Kurt had an idea. There was a rabbit hole in the base of the tree, just wide enough for him to fit through. He poked his head in, and saw the knave kneeling a way away. Kurt scrambled through the hole and started to crawl towards the Knave.

"What are you doing in here?" Kurt asked. "It's dangerous!"

"I'm sorry Alice." Was all he said.

"For what? And why do you keep calling me Ali-" Kurt broke off into a shrill scream and the floor beneath him gave way.

Kurt tumbled down the rabbit hole, tossing and turning, seeing things that weren't possible. "I'm insane." He thought as he saw a rabbit sleeping in a bed. He bumped into a wall, scratching franticly for a handhold, but the only stable thing he grabbed onto was a parasol. In that moment a flood of relief washed over him. He would not fall to his doom; he could climb up the sides of the rabbit hole and go home. But that was too simple. The parasol dislodged from the wall, snapping open. Kurt was ready to scream but he didn't need to. The parasol slowed his fall, to the point where he just landed softly of the ground. Far away near a door, the Knave stood silently. Kurt took a moment to study the room. It was grand. It had a tiled floor and a painted roof, with a pattern of hearts on it. Slowly Kurt realised that hearts were everywhere around the room, save for the walls, which had portraits of the oddest looking people. Kings and queens, dressed in old clothes, bedecked with hearts. Kurt's eyes settled in the Knave again. He couldn't be older than Kurt, and he was dressed in a plane white shirt with long sleeves, rolled up to the elbows, and black pants. Kurt noticed that on the collar of is shirt there was a small embroidered heart. Confusion, panic and intrigue all flooded into Kurt's mind at the same time. Where was he? How would he get back home? What was going to happen to his dad and Carole?

"Alice. Welcome to the Palace of Hearts." Said the Knave, a hint of loathing in his voice. "You will follow me." The Knave led Kurt down a narrow hallway, adorned with faux columns on the walls. They came to a halt in front of a pair of doors, decked in jewels a gold paint. The knave knocked twice and the doors opened. Sitting on the two thrones at the back of the room was a boy of about nineteen, and a girl who looked to be Kurt's age. "The King and Queen of Hearts." The Knave announced.

The King of Hearts was a well -built man, with a strong jawline and blue-green eyes. He had a commanding presence, and an evil smirk spread across his face when he saw Kurt, looking dishevelled, and dirty. The Queen was the opposite. She was small and petite, looking at her shoes, like she was hoping not to be noticed. Her brown hair hung straight, half way down her back. When she lifted her head her eyes never left her kings face. They were filled with love, but there was a shadow of something else; fear?

"I am Hunter Clarington." The King said haughtily. "King of Hearts. This is Rachel; my Queen." At this point Rachel stood, nodded towards Kurt and the Knave, and left the room. "She's a good Queen, Rachel. Does as she's told." He smiled with malice as he continued, "Kurt Hummel. You're an interesting one. I've had the Knave watch you for a while now, and I think you will make some great entertainment. Bring out the White Rabbit." As he said the last two sentences he smiled manically, his face twisting and contorting. Two playing cards matched out of the door Kurt had come through, a boy in between them. He had dark, curly hair with two white rabbit ears poking out the top and wore a slightly rumpled waistcoat. His eyes were so sad; he looked like a lost puppy. The ace kicked him towards Kurt and he stumbled and fell. Kurt leaned down to help him up but the shorter boy hissed, "Stop. You'll get both of us in trouble." Puzzled at this statement Kurt stood back up.

"Rabbit, introduce yourself. You are a part of a bet I would like to make." Said Hunter, coldly

"I am Blaine Anderson, better known as the White Rabbit. I'm sixteen and currently work for the King of Hearts." His speech sounded rehearsed, as if he had said it many times before. There was a newfound fear in his eyes at the mention of a bet though.

"Yes, now Alice, I would like to play a game with you. I'm sure you would like to go home, and I don't think you would like the Rabbit's pretty little head to roll." Kurt took a step back. Had he just spoke of killing the Rabbit if he didn't play his game? Kurt didn't even know him!

"I will set a challenge and when you complete it you will get the next one. If you complete all of the challenges before the next blue moon, you win. Sound easy enough? If you win I will give you the ability to travel to and from this place as you desire, and I will free the White Rabbit. However, if you lose… You become my servant and the White Rabbit gets axed" said Hunter maniacally.

"Why should I even care about him?" Kurt asked, on a whim. His heart was pumping furiously, as he thought of the chance that something he did could endanger a life, no matter if it was a stranger or friend.

"I told you I had been watching you. You have been hurt by people all your life, for something you can't control. I doubt you would let somebody else be subjected to that." Said the King cruelly.

"What if I don't play?" Kurt asked warily.

"Same as if you lose." replied the King, sounding bored.

"Then I'll play" He said. "I've got nothing to lose."

"Excellent." Smiled the King. "Now listen closely, for I'll not repeat;

This game you have agreed to play

You must listen closely, so I may,

Tell you the first task I give,

Listen closely and the Rabbit my live;

At my feet many lay,

Servants who serve to today,

But only one is dear to me,

She has not the will to flee,

Her heart and soul are bound to me,

To fly away would be mutiny,

But fly away one day she must,

I am beginning to lose her trust,

Over a gamble I made long ago,

This only one person does know,

Seek him out and you will find,

The thing that may save your Rabbit's hind."

Kurt looked to the curly haired boy and he sighed. He knew he would remember the riddle; this boy's life depended on it.

"I give you one day to get far away. Then the sabotage begins." Said Hunter, exiting the room. The moment he left the White Rabbit turned to Kurt. "You have one day to get out of the castle, which is a feat in itself." He said. "Then you must find somewhere safe to sleep. To get out of the castle follow all the paintings with a heart in the bottom right-hand corner of the frame." He got nudged by one of the playing cards. He had to go. "They used to speak." He sighed. "Under the Queens rule that would say the most beautiful poems and riddles, but the King said it was nonsense and made the Hatter sew their mouths shut. I have to go now. Goodbye… Alice?"

"Kurt." He said. "Goodbye Blaine." Kurt cast one last sad look at the boy whose life was now in his hands and ran. The castle, which had looked grand as he entered, now looked horrifying. It was dark, oppressive, and it chocked the air from his lungs. He ran out of the wrought iron gates panting and all he could hear was a voice in his head. "Alice… Alice…" it said. The world was closing in on him but he just kept running.


	2. Chapter 2: The Queen and the Caterpillar

A/N: Sorry it took so long to update! My editor Tess went away so she couldn't read my emails :O Thanks to the people who have followed. Every time somebody follows I get an email and every time I get that email it makes my really happy. So now for my next chapter :D Imaginary hoverboards to anybody who can guess the reference in the chapter name.

Disclaimer: I do not own Glee, Alice in Wonderland, or any of the characters from those franchises.

Chapter Two: The Queen and the Caterpillar, or The Story of the Big Mistake.

"Alice… Alice…" Kurt's eyes slowly started blinking open. He couldn't remember when he stopped running, but it hadn't been a day. A Latino girl with long black hair was looking over him. She reached out a hand to help him up. "You gotta get out of here, Lady Face" She said.

"Lady Face?" He asked.  
"Have you ever looked in a mirror?" She said, by way of answer. "Follow me. Its kinda dangerous here. You chose a hell of a place to pass out." Kurt heard an echoing laugh, and some chattering coming from the swamps in the distance. He turned to ask the girl what it was but she was gone, only a wisp of purple smoke where she was.

"Over here, Alice!" Came a voice from a couple of metres down the path. He ran to follow the girl, who kept disappearing and materialising a couple of meters away. Her pupils were slitted like a cat's, and her lips were constantly twisted into a wide smirk, like she was up to something. After they were out sight of swamps, she suddenly stopped, almost causing Kurt to run into her.

"Take my hand." She said. "I heard of your quest and I think the person I'm about to take you to will know what you need, or at least who you need to talk to. I'm Santana or the Cheshire Cat, I don't really care what you call me." As Kurt took Santana's hand he had the oddest feeling of dematerialising, thinning out into smoke. He was seeing two pictures overlapping, one of the stony pathway that he had been standing on, and one of a deep cavernous gorge, with oversized mushrooms sprouting from the walls. The latter was getting stronger and stronger, until the other completely faded out. He was standing in a cave at the bottom of a chasm. The Cheshire Cat let go of his hand and said, "Go to that castle and ask for the Caterpillar, throw in the word knowledgeable somewhere in the sentence and he'll see you. And for God's sake, when you introduce yourself use you Wonderland name too, or he'll get confused and throw you out."

"Wonderland name?" repeated Kurt, looking bewildered. What was a Wonderland name?

"Just go. I can't come with you; The Caterpillar and I tend to have… disagreements when we are together and that's the last thing you need." After saying this she disappeared in a puff of purple smoke.

Kurt gulped as he approached the enormous castle. It was something you would see in a fairytale, a very twisted fairytale. The castle was enormous, and covered in moss and vines. It was the colour of wet concrete, and had small cracks running down it and the spires seemed to whisper to each other. A great, booming voice filled the air,

"WHO ARE _YOU_?"

"Kurt. Kurt Hummel." He replied.

"NO. WHO _ARE_ YOU?" repeated the voice.

"Kurt…" he thought for a second. What was a Wonderland name? Everybody seemed to have two names here, then it hit him. What had everybody been calling him since he came here? "Kurt Hummel, otherwise known as Alice."

The moment he said 'Alice' the doors swung open. Looking into the foreboding darkness, Kurt felt a twinge of fear, "I- I'm looking for the caterpillar?" He said to the darkness.

"Yes, yes, follow the mushroom." Said a voice in the dark. It wasn't as loud as the booming voice from outside, but it was unmistakably the same one. Kurt looked around for a mushroom but saw nothing in the black. A light was coming down the stairs and he saw a small mushroom with a lantern on its head running towards him. It was purple and cone shaped, with a rounded top. It's stem had tiny feet, but no legs, so its walk was more of a waddle. Kurt followed the mushroom into one of the spires, furnished to be a library.  
"Where is the Caterpillar?" Said Kurt, to the mushroom. _Oh god… talking to mushrooms now. You need you sanity tested. _ There came a laugh from behind the books. A boy of Asian heritage poked his head around the corner.

"I'm here. I'm the Caterpillar, but you can call me Wes."

"Umm, ok. The Cheshire Cat said you could help me with this riddle. She brought me here."

"She must really have faith in you if she actually brought you to _me_. Let's hear this riddle then."

"'_This game you have agreed to play_

_You must listen closely, so I may,_

_Tell you the first task I give,_

_Listen closely and the Rabbit my live;_

_At my feet many lay,_

_Servants who serve to today,_

_But only one is dear to me,_

_She has not the will to flee,_

_Her heart and soul are bound to me,_

_To fly away would be mutiny,_

_But fly away one day she must,_

_I am beginning to lose her trust,_

_Over a gamble I made long ago,_

_This only one person does know,_

_Seek him out and you will find,_

_The thing that may save your Rabbit's hind.'"_

"Who told you this riddle?" Wes asked thoughtfully.

"The King of Hearts." Replied Kurt.

"As I thought." The Caterpillar said. "To understand this riddle you need to understand the history of Wonderland. Firstly, Wonderland is split into four parts, for the four monarchs. Altogether the four parts make the Land of Cards. There is the Land of Spades, ruled by the King and Queen of Spades, the Land of Clubs, ruled by the King and Queen of Clubs, the Land of Diamonds, ruled by the King and Queen of Diamonds and the Land of Hearts, ruled by the King and Queen of Hearts. Wonderland was divided when the last Queen had four daughters, and decided they would all rule. Queen Rachel was the youngest, and when she turned fifteen she ascended to the throne, with her mother advising her. However soon enough the Queen fell ill and the advisors urged her to take a husband to help her. That was when King Hunter stepped in. It was originally out of good intentions. He did love Rachel once. He became the King and for a year or so they were okay, but the King and Queen began to fight. The King and I were good friends at the time, and I saw how corrupted he had gotten with power, and that is what led him to the decision that would plunge the Land of Hearts into darkness.

"He stole Rachel's heart. He knew she couldn't argue with him if she had no love for anything but him. He stole Rachel's heart and sealed it inside a key, which he kept on a chain around his neck for some time, but eventually the burden of somebody else's heart became too much for him and he cast the key into the Talking Flowers Garden, in a fit of rage. The key, being an object of evil, cursed the garden, turning the flowers to carnivorous weeds, and the garden to a deep pit. Now the Queen can't leave. She effectively his slave, living in a fearful love.

"I think the key is the object you need. It is an object that will set free a servant that he loves dearly. That is the Queen."

Kurt stared at the Caterpillar, shock apparent across his features. "H-how could he do that to somebody he loved?" Kurt asked.

"Power corrupts." Wes sighed. "I would have some coffee with you but right now you are leading the Knave right to my door. TWEEDLES!" Two boys came round to the door. They were tall, and both had eyes the colour of the sky, but one had short blonde hair where the other had slightly longer messy black. In all other respects they were identical. "These are the Tweedles. They've ben loitering around my house for too long. If you promise to pass a message on to a friend of mine, the Dormouse, when you see him, Then I'll send them with you, as guides." said Wes. His face fell as he continued. "Tell him that we'll see each other sooner than he thinks, and- and that I'm sorry. " A tear slid down the Caterpillar's cheek, as he said the last sentence. It slowly dawned on Kurt how lonely it must be here. The chasm that nursed these caves was insanely deep, and the journey here must be hard to make.

"Hiya." Said one.

"You must be Alice." Said the other.

"Were the Tweedles."  
"-Dee and -Dum to be certain."  
"But you can call us-"

"Jayce and James."

"Me being Jayce." Said the black-haired one.  
"And me being James. Or Jem. Whichever you prefer." Said the blonde.

"Are we going to the Weed Garden?" Asked Jayce.

Kurt rubbed his temples, looking at the twins in front of him. They grinned happily as the each grabbed one of his arms and set off.

"Usually you would have to climb out." Grinned Jayce. "But we know a short cut."  
"Jayce, that place hasn't been used in years!" groaned Jem. "Its probably got millions of dragonfly nests now! And when those things flame it _hurts_."  
"Am I missing something?" asked Kurt, confused. "Since when did dragonflys _flame_?"  
"Have you ever seen a dragonfly?" asked Jem. Kurt nodded, confusion still covering his face.  
"Did you see it here?" asked Jayce, and evil grin spreading across his face.  
'Uh… no." replied Kurt.  
"Then you're in for a bit of a treat."

The twins walked to a wall and put their hands to it, whispering unintelligible words. A door slowly faded into view and Jem smiled as he pushed it open. A long, dirty, slippery set of spiral stairs stood before them. The air smelled of dust and damp, and there was a flickering light peeking around the corner. Jayce, looking excited, grabbed Kurt and ran up the stairs, Jem stopped every few steps to stop Kurt from falling in the slippery bits. When they rounded the corner they saw the light source. It was four tiny dragons, about the size of Kurt's index finger.  
"That is a dragonfly." Jem whispered. "They won't mind us if were quiet. Also be careful, these things usually live in colonies, so there's probably more"  
They crept past the dragonflys, prepared to sneak past another nest, but there was none. For a long time the walk up the stairs was uneventful. It was hours before they saw the any natural light, and even then it was only a small sliver in the distance. Climbing the stairs would be tiring, and dead boring but the twins kept him occupied with their non-stop chatter.

"And his Caterpillery-ness had an assistant!" exclaimed Jem.  
"Mm. Two in fact." Continued Jayce.  
"The Princess of Sparks and Mister Dormouse."  
"Too bad the disappeared."  
"Yeah, Wes never did tell us where they went."  
"All the more pity. Wes could have the Dormouse, but the Princess of Sparks was a riot!" Laughed Jayce.  
"She sung too. She had a great voice" Lamented Jem with a sigh.

They continued walking in silence for a few hours until they reached the surface.

"Okay so we're to take you to the Talking Flower's Garden." Said Jayce  
"Or the Weed Pit, as it is now called." Spat Jem.  
"Yeah, when the curse took place, people stopped calling it a garden."  
"You're gonna be lucky to get out alive."  
"Luckily that's our specialty."  
"But we may have to call in a favour."  
Both twins looked at Kurt, their faces splitting in to two identical mischievous smiles.  
"We think it's time you met the Hatter."


	3. Chapter 3: Why is a Raven?

A/N Hello, lovelies! I'm sorry I havnt updated in so long! FALSE ALARM PEOPLE MY EDITOR IS BACK (Thanks Tessie!). I may not be updating very quickly lately, because I'm stuck on a bit of chapter four, so I'm sorry if it doesnt get up soon. Btw reviews will make me update quicker... just saying. ALSO THANK YOU TO THE FOUR PEOPLE WHO HAVE FOLLOWED/FAVOURITED THIS STORY I LOVE YOU MWA! 3

Chapter Three: Why is a Raven Like a Writing Desk?

Burt Hummel smiles down at his son, eyes full of pride. Kurt's smile widened as his father pulled him into a hug. It has been a long time since he could be with his dad like this; with no awkwardness or weird looks. "I love you Dad." He said.

"Love you too, Kurt." Burt said, looking at his son. Kurt wasn't the son that he had always thought about having, but he was still perfect. Kurt had just been chosen to do one of the solos at the annual Arts Night (which was held when the arts faculty could fund it) and Burt couldn't be prouder. Tears slid down Kurt's cheek as his Dad said how proud he was.

"Alice, you're daydreaming again." Jayce and Jem were looking at him oddly and Kurt realised he had been tearing up at the memory.

"It's nothing." Kurt said. They had covered a lot of ground since they had left the Castle of Knowledge (as the twins had told him the Caterpillars castle was called), and it was almost sundown when they reached the small clearing in the trees, where the Hatter and the Hare lived. Kurt would have thought things looked weird here, but everything was backward since he got to this odd place. There were a tight ring of trees, with thick, spiky bushes growing in between them, the only possible entry being a gap in the trees where two large leaves stood, by way of a door.

"Jeff, Nick! It's us!" called the Tweedles in unison. The leaves instantly parted to reveal a clearing, with a small cliff with a cave in it on one side and a large dining table set for about twenty people, with three elegant teapots in the centre. Each place at the table had a small, white china teacup, with small blue patterns painted around the side. At the head of the table a boy was seated, wearing a bottle green tailcoat, and a dark purple velvet top hat. He immediately looked up from his tea and a smile lit up his face. He had a very Joker-esque smile and hazel eyes. His hair was dark brown and had a slight curl to the end. He looked neat and proper, but something in his eyes and smile had Kurt felling the need to keep his distance. To his right a blonde boy sat. He had blonde hair and his eyes were a lighter hazel than the other boy. He was dressed formally too, but looked unkempt, his shoes scuffed and the edges of his tailcoat frayed. His bright hair was all over the place, like he had just woken up, and had two long rabbit ears poking through the top. They were skinnier than the White Rabbit's and scruffier. They were an ivory colour and they were twitching and alert.

The two boys stood, the blonde looking wary, but the other looking happy and welcoming. The Tweedles were beaming.

"Alice." Jem began.

"This is our esteemed friend, the Mad Hatter." Continued Jayce.

"And his friend, the March Hare."

The Hatter looked up. "Call me Nick. And this here is my boyfriend Jeff." Jeff shifted his weight, uncomfortably.

"You made it official?" asked Jayce, surprised. "Jeez, how long were we in that castle for?" Jem shook his head.

"You guys have to tell us stuff, you know."

Jeff laughed uneasily. "Who is this?" he enquired, looking curiously at Kurt.

"Oh this is Ali-"

"Kurt" Kurt cut in. "I'm Kurt."

"Yeah, we need the Hatter and your help."

"We have a mission." Jayce said, grinning.

"Of danger and cruelty" Jem started

"Romance and tragedy."

"A tale of bad tidings"

"An adventure that will make what we did to the Queen of Spades."

"Look like child's play"

At this Nick and Jeff looked slightly taken aback. "I had heard of this" Nick said. As he spoke his eyes lit up, an idea forming behind his eyes. "I have something that will help you, but to get it… you'll need to answer a question." He smiled manically as he said the last sentence.

"Oh, come on, Hats!" whined Jayce. "We've been friends for ages!"

He ignored Jayce while Jeff looked mildly amused. "Here is your question. Why is a raven like a writing desk?"

"WERE SCREWED!" yelled Jayce.

"He's been asking that for ages and nobody has said what he wanted yet." Explained Jem.

Kurt puzzled over the question for the rest of that night. Why is a raven like a writing desk? Why is a raven like a writing desk… they can both be black… but other that that, I can't think of anything. It puzzled Kurt. It was like when a teacher said something stupid just to see if you had the intellect to say that they aren't right. He sat on there, in the high backed wooden chair for hours. His eyes started to drop and a memory ripped through him.

"And that's why the egret is actually a prehistoric dinosaur, that nobody had noticed until two years ago. Questions?" Miss Price stood by that board, looking like she was going to start laughing while her class looked at each other dumbly. Kurt looked up, having heard everything she had just said, he knew it was all made up, and he sighed as she continued. "What was the most important discovery that lead to this realization? Mr Hummel?" Kurt looked up, dumfounded. He had no idea how to answer the question without completely contradicting her, so he just said what he thought. "I think you're wrong, Miss Price. I had to do a paper on this bird last year and it is from the Ardeindae family. Nothing to do with dinosaurs as far as anybody knows." Kurt's voice shook as he delivered this small speech, slightly scared of being told he was wrong, but sly smile slid across his teacher's face. "Exactly. I just wanted to see if any of you had the courage, or intellect to say I was wrong."

"Why is a raven like a writing desk?" Kurt repeated to himself. Then it hit him. "It's not." He laughed, realising the answer.

"Very astute" said a voice in the shadows. Jeff came out of the shadows. "Most people won't even consider that it might be a trick question." The March Hare scratched his ear and sighed. "Nick will have to figure out a new question now."

"I already have one, my friend." Said the Hatter, walking out from the small cave in which he had been sleeping. "And this is for you." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a stone, which cast a light so bright that the whole clearing became lit. "It's called sunstone. It will only work while somebody is holding it so don't put it in a lantern or anything. And I want it back when you're done with it. Also Jeff and I are coming with you to the pit." This came as a surprise to Jeff who, looking startled, near yelled, "WHAT? YOU KNOW I HATE THAT PLACE!" The Hatter looked fondly at his companion and whispered something in his ear. The Hare, looking comforted smiled at Kurt. "Of course. We'll go with you"

Kurt slipped the sunstone in his pocket and walked to the small cave and was surprised to find a small wall and door just inside. The inside resembled the inside of a small cottage, and had only four rooms, the smallest holding a small wood stove, various cupboards and a table, with flour, a rolling pin, and a tea towel scattered over it. The other was a living room, with an old couch, fireplace and many bookshelves. One, which they were not allowed to go into was apparently the Hatter and the Hare's bedroom. The last was a surprise. There were a multitude of instruments in this one, the most elegant of these being the harp.

"Jeff and I both like music, and between us we can play many instruments." explained Nick. Kurt smiled, remembering back to the first time that he had ever sung his feelings.

"May I?" he asked, gesturing towards the piano. Before she had died his mother had taught him enough piano for him to read sheet music and remember his favourite songs.

"Of course." Said Nick, his voice softer, more silky.

Kurt caressed the keys as he sat on the small stool in front of the black grand piano. Music flowed from his fingertips as he began to sing.

"I've heard there was a secret chord,

That David played and it pleased the Lord,

But you don't really care for music do you?"

Kurts mood lifted as the song flew from his mouth. Not much had changed on this front. Singing always made him happier, no matter what he was singing.

It goes like this,

The fourth the fifth,

The minor fall, the major lift,

The baffled king composing Hallelujah,

Hallelujah, Hallelujah,

Hallelujah, Hallelujah,

Your faith was strong but you needed proof,

You saw her bathing on the roof,

Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you,

she tied you to her kitchen chair,

And she broke your throne and she cut your hair,

And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

Well baby I've been here before,

I've seen this room and I've walked this floor,

I used to live alone before I knew you,

I've seen your flag on the marble arch,

Love is not a victory march,

It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

Well there was a time when you let me know,

What's really going on below,

But now you never show that to me do you?

And remember when I moved in you?

And the holy dove was moving too,

And every breath we drew was Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

Well maybe there's a God above,

But all I've ever learned from love,

Was how to shoot somebody who out drew you,

And it's not a cry that you hear at night,

It's not somebody who's seen in the light,

It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah,

Hallelujah ,

Hallelujah ,

Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

Hallelujah,

As he belted out the final word Kurt suddenly became aware of the fact that the whole house was watching him. The Tweedles carried an expression of absolute shock and Jeff looked approving. Nick simply looked elated, content.

"Wow, Kurt…" Jem carried an expression of dumb shock, so blatant on his face, that Kurt nearly laughed. The Tweedles and Kurt all walked into the living room and, after laying out some blankets and cushions they lay down, whispered goodnight and, in spite of Jayce and Jem's constant whispered chatter, Kurt immeadiatly fell into an odd sleep.

He pulled at the blue shirt wrapped around his slender frame. Fear took him as he stood next to the King, who had not let him out of his sight since the blue moon. A terrified looking white Rabbit ascended the stairs to the chopping block. This boy, whom Kurt barely knew, was going to die because of him. Because he wasn't quick enough. Because he couldn't play this stupid game right. Blaine Anderson winced as a woman, slim for how strong she appeared to be, grabbed him by the ears and placed his head over the chopping block. She had blonde hair and looked to be about forty. Her blue eyes were narrowed and she smiled with malice as she brought the axe over her shoulder.

"GET ON WITH IT SUE!" Hunter yelled out, suddenly. The executioner grinned as she swung the axe. Kurt saw red as the axe hit its mark. The world went black as a sentence echoed in his head. "This is all your fault, you know." It was Hunter's voice, laughing evilly.

Outside, leaning against the table, the Knave sighed as he continued whispering the charm that he had been instructed to cast. It was gibberish to him, but he knew the intent. Alice would be plagued with nightmare until the blue moon. A tear slid down his cheek. He couldn't believe he was doing this. His White Rabbit could die because of this. For so long he had been obsessed with Blaine. With his idiosyncrasies, his looks, his voice. He knew that his part in this horrid scheme was partly Hunter's punishment for falling in love with a boy. A servant boy, no less. Sebastian had been with many men before, and when he met Blaine he hadn't felt any differently than he would have if he was any other person. But as his feelings developed, Blaine rejected his advances, and that bitch Sue had found out and told Hunter. He had been whipped bloody. He now had a thin silver scar covering his eye, and this was just another form of punishment. The Knave wiped the tear from his cheek and disappeared into the shadows, unaware of the pair of slitted eyes that watched him.


	4. Chapter 4: What Beautiful Flowers

A/N: SO MY DARLINGS! Yes here it is, the fourth chapter (OMG RIGHT?) Please don't kill me about what happens in this chapter, I couldn't help it! It had to be done! Tess (le editor extraordinaire) has already said that she is soooo not cool with it. So read and review!

Disclaimer: I do not own Glee, Alice in Wonderland, or any of the characters from those franchises.

**Chapter 4: What Beautiful Flowers**

They got up early the next morning, though the weed pit was only half an hours walk away, but they had to get there in the wee hours of the morning because, "That's when the weeds are least hungry." explained a nervous looking hare. Jeff had been fretting all morning, ears standing on end. "Guys hurry up! It's almost three o'clock." Nick looked at Jeff with a slight smirk as he whispered, "I actually banned him from drinking coffee this morning. Imaging how much worse he would be with caffeine in his system." They collectively shuddered at the thought. The Hatter stood, and tugging slightly, pulled Jeff out of the kitchen and into their bedroom. Jayce and Jem were too busy throwing flour at each other to notice that Nick forgot to close the door to the bedroom. Kurt felt slightly bad about eavesdropping -but the scene in front of him was, there was no other word to describe it- beautiful.

"Jeff." Nick said softly, tracing circles into his boyfriend's bare shoulder. "Calm down." Jeff looked sadly at his partner. "I'm sorry." He whispered. "I know it's hard for you." Nick looked down at him, with an expression of pure love. Kurt's heart swelled as he looked at the couple, who bore expressions of nothing but love and familiarity. There familiarity was such that they both knew exactly what the other meant, with each touch and each whispered comfort. The Hare leaned into his partner as Nick began stroking his ears. "This is who you are." He whispered, barely loud enough for Kurt, who was now standing in the outside corridor, to hear. "And I love you." Jeff looked lovingly into the Mad Hatter's eyes. "And I have my moments too." Nick said quietly. Jeff cuddled into Nicks lap and placed a chaste kiss to his cheek. "That's why we're perfect together."

"Eavesdrop much?" whispered a voice in his ear. Kurt almost fell over due to shock, and it took him a few seconds to turn around and register that it was not one of the cuddling lovers in to other room that had walked out and caught him, but Jem.  
"I thought you guys were busy with the four fight." Said Kurt, trying to sound less shocked.  
"Relax, it's not like I'm going to tell them, but if you come with me, I'll explain." Jem walked ino the living room, grabbing Jayce along the way and they all sat down on the small couch.  
"You see, ever since we were little, we've known Nick." Jem started.  
"We have known about his… episodes for a long time, and we can deal with it." Jayce continued.  
"He can be a little intense."  
"He is mad after all."  
"He could stand up and start screaming about something when our life depends on being quiet."  
"It has happened."  
"That's why we know every back way out of every place in the whole of Wonderland."  
"And we knew about the Hare in passing too."  
"Though we had never actually met him."  
" There was a rumour of a crazy hare, living in the wood."  
"Who was always screaming about thing coming to get him."  
"We thought maybe we could help him."  
"So we brought Nick with us to go and find him."  
"We spent a lot of time together."  
"And Nick found an obsession with riddles."  
"And tea."  
"And they fell for each other."  
"Jeff could calm Nick down easily when he had an episode."  
"And Nick could always calm Jeff down when he got worried "  
"So we left them here."  
"To be together forever."  
"In sickness and in heath."  
"In happiness and in pain." Jem finished with a cheeky smile. "But we still drop in. The Hatter likes a good prank."  
This story left Kurt more confused than before. What happened in one of the Hatter's _episodes _and why did they happen? Nick seemed so calm and collected, it was hard to imagine him out of control.  
"You guys are so melodramatic." Came a voice from the door. The Mad Hatter stood in the doorway, a slight grin lighting his features. "Come on. Jeff's got our stuff outside."

Outside, the March Hare stood, waiting calmly for them. Around him were two bags, one holding food, the other holding blankets and coats. In his hand was a heavily enchanted small velvet bag with stain drawstrings, for the key. They had decided that it would be best to carry it in a bag with a protection enchantment and binding charm on it, as it may infect other areas of Wonderland if it is exposed. Each of the Tweedles grabbed a bag, and started walking up the path.

A couple hundred meters down the path thorns started growing, and an eerie tune filled the air. It sounded mourning, like something that may be played at a funeral. A haze of fear began to grip Kurt, setting in like a fog, clouding his senses. His heart was beating like a hummingbirds wings and hs breathing became heavy. One of the thorny bushes snaked out and tried to grab at his ankle, while humming that eerie tune.  
"They still sing." muttered Jayce in annoyance. "Get the light out Ali- Kurt. They get bigger." Kurt pulled the light from his pocket and the weeds immeadiatly shied away from them. They stopped humming, instead making a hissing noise, like water being dripped onto a heated pan. The walk to the pit seemed to take forever, although the it was relatively short. The hissing got louder as the weeds and thorns got bigger and more frequent in sightings, until the path was almost obscured. The pit was terrifying. There were flowers, blackened and wilted, suffocated by weeds and with faces that looked wrong. Their eyes were sunken into the folds of their petals and their leaves housed a blue poison, toxic to the touch. Blood lingered on the edges of the black, papery petals.

They scrambled down the side of the pit, and the largest of the flowers, a magnificent black rose, spoke in a high, breathy voice, "You're a _WEED_. We don't like _weeds_." Her odd, airy voice tuned rough and deadly as she started to sing.

"_Mary, Mary, quite contrary  
How does your garden grow?  
With death and blood and lots of mud,  
And one last killing blow!"_

The stench of blood filled the air and the flowers, although hindered by the light, were finding ways to slow them down. They would raise their roots and trip them, or, at one point, release mushroom spores and make it difficult to breath. Luckily in that instance the hatter had known they were going to b entering the mushroom territory, and told them to breathe through a piece of cloth. Slowly a light appeared in the distance, a small chamber, with a door of silver. A smile lit up Jayce's face as he broke into a run, bumbing into Kurt. Kurt's heart dropped as the light fell from his hand, and extinguished. The door was less than one hundred meters away, but they weren't going to make it with the flowers closinging in on them, murderous expressions on their faces. The Hatter screamed at them to run, and without a look back, sprinted I the opposite direction. Jem scopped a histeric Jeff into his arms and they bolted for the door. Once they were inside, Jem let Jeff down and bolted the doors.

-O—

Jeff felt like his heart had been ripped in two. He started shaking, his screams ripping through the night. "NICK! NICK!" he called for his friend, for his lover, and started to run after him when he was pulled into iron arms, and held there, unable to escape. With every step that his captor took he was further away from Nick. Every step further felt like more and more of his heart, his life, was being ripped away. He was pulled into darkness and then he was falling. Falingfallingfalling. The smell earth filled his nose and his ears twitched at the sound of somebody yelling his name. "JEFF! I LO-" The cry was cut short and his the Mad Hatter was silent. Blackness closed in, and that cry repeated over and over in the March Hare's mind.

-O-

Kurt's eyes were wide, as he saw he small key, sitting on a crystal podium, a jewel in the shape of a heart topping it. A smoky substance swirled around in the jewel and Jem was staring into it, enchanted. "The queen's heart…" he whispered. He grabbed it and put it into the small charmed bag, and a sharp wind brushed past the, into the key, like all the air around the garden had been sucked into the small key. Kurt glanced around the crystal chamber, blues and whites grabbing his eyes, light glinting off the stalactites that hung from the ceiling. It was beautiful. So beautiful that he could have stayed there and just looked at it for hours, but sadly that was not the case. Soon enough the weight of the Hatters sacrifice settled upon his shoulders and, as if reading his mind, Jem whispered, "He's dead… There's no way he could have survived." They found a secret passageway out the back, and it was decided that the Tweedles would accompany Kurt to the castle, while Jeff would go home and mourn his loss. They had won, but they had also lost, and they could not celebrate, in the knowledge of their friends sacrifice.

Tears fell form Kurts eyes, over somebody he barely even knew. That made it even worse. The Hatter barely knew him, yet he gave his life for a battle that was Kurt's. For a stupid game that he didn't have to be involved in. That night they set up a camp and all huddled around the fire, not saying anything, but feeling each other's comfort all the same.


	5. Chapter 5: Drink Me

A/N: So I finally managed to edit this chapter! Its so frustrating, editing your own writing, because you know where the story is heading so it seems tedious. BUT I POWERED THROUGH FOR YOU! So here is the next instalment of Dark Wonderland. I hope you like it, please follow favourite and review!

Disclaimer: I do not own Glee, Alice in Wonderland, or any of the characters from those franchises.

Chapter Five

_Flowers surrounded Kurt looking solemnly at him, until a scream of agony ripped through the air. Their faces turned vicious and sadistic and their stems parted, revealing a cage, with the beaten and bloodied Hatter inside it. Their petals dripped blood onto his skin as they looked over him blood dripping into the cage. As the thick red liquid hit him, his skin burned. He writhed in pain and screamed for them to stop. Blood dripped into his eyes and they burned too. The black rose looked down on Nick sadly and said to Kurt, "You could have stopped it." Then Jeff was there, rushing to Nick's side. Nick stumbled out his cage and looked up at Kurt, with eyes that would never see again, and whispered one word, "Why?"_

Kurt awoke, sweating and panting. The images he had dreamt up swam around in his mind and he was vaguely aware of somebody stroking his hand. He looked up to see Jeff, looking down at him, worriedly. "You looked like you were having a nightmare." Jeff said, looking at him kindly. It was odd to see Jeff void of him nervous and suspecting demeanour. They sat, side by side, staring into the coals of the extinguished fire for a while before Jeff finally got up. When he lifted his face Kurt saw that he had been crying, silently, Jeff brushed of Kurt's attempts at comforting him, saying that he just wanted to get home. Kurt offered to accompany him, but this was a journey that he had to make alone. Jeff looked weary, his face worn out, and his eyes red from crying. "Good luck on your journey." He had called from the distance. The Tweedles were still snoring and Kurt needed something to occupy himself, so he restarted the fire and pulled some bread and a ham-like meat from the bag of provisions. In half an hour the fire was hot enough to cook on, so Kurt grabbed a long stick, and stuck one of the pieces of meat on it. It was slow work, cooking meat over a fire, and Kurt worried about the small amount that had already been cooked getting cold, but the smell seemed to wake the Tweedles from their slumber, and soon enough they were gathering around him hungrily. Kurt looked up at the two boys, who he could swear were salivating. He was getting fond of the twins, who always seemed to be happy and smiling.  
"You draw me from sleep with the smell of cooking perna!" Jayce said, his eyes still slightly droopy from sleep, but sounding alert all the same.  
"Perna?" asked Kurt.  
"That's the meat you're cooking." Said Jem, settling beside Kurt. Meanwhile Jayce was looking around excitedly for more food.  
"Do you want us to go find berries?" Jayce asked brightly.  
"Sure." Kurt said. "Might be nice." Jayce went off to find berries and Jem sat down beside Kurt, grabbed a stick and began to toast the bread.  
"So where to now?" asked Jem.  
"The castle, I guess. We have to help the queen." A shiver worked its way down Kurt's spine as he said this. Going back to the castle could mean seeing the King.  
"Kurt?" Jem started. "While we're at the palace we should grab the White Rabbit. The King doesn't play fair, and if he loses he might just kill Blaine anyway."  
"Of course." Kurt replied. They continued cooking in silence, Jem, trying to plan their way into the castle, Kurt, simply enjoying the silence. He looked down on his soiled clothes, his new designer shirt, torn and stained. He groaned in frustration, attracting Jem's attention.  
"I think we should get you some new clothes." he said, smiling and fingering the collar of Kurt's shirt. "We could probably grab some in the castle." Kurt smiled gratefully, as Jayce came bursting into the clearing.  
"You guys look about four seconds away from kissing!" Jayce proclaimed as he sat down. Jem looked at him disparagingly while Kurt blushed crimson.  
"Don't take what he says to seriously." Said Jem, grabbing a handful of berries.  
Jayce grabbed some bacon as he began talking. "So I'm thinking the best way to the Queen is when she goes for those walks in her private garden. You know, when the King doesn't want her around? Well if we give her the key she should instinctively know how to work it. The hardest part will be getting out, and grabbing the Rabbit."  
"If we use that tactic we used to get into the Queen of Spades' room then it will be almost fool proof." Said Jem thoughtfully.  
Kurt was confused, "What tactic was that?"  
"We released a nest of Dragonflies into the palace and then we took some _crescereparva_to get in without being noticed." Said Jem nonchalantly.  
Kurt's jaw dropped.

-O-

"I cannot believe we are doing this." whispered Kurt. They were all the size of mice after drinking a clear liquid from a small glass bottle labelled 'Drink Me.' And were standing by with a whole crate full of dragon flies. Jem was holding a string that, when pulled, would let the dragonflies out. As he did that they were to run into the small hole inbbetween the bricks and make their way through the castle inside the walls. "Will we ever get big again?" he tacked on, worriedly.  
"Newbie." Said Jayce. "I have some _cresceremagnus_on me. We'll get bigger."  
"Concentrate, you two." hissed Jem. "Releasing the dragonflies in… 5… 4… 3… 2… 1." He gave the string a short tug, and dragonflies flew everywhere, light glinting off their scales. Once the dragonflies were all in the castle, Jayce grabbed them and made a beeline for the walls of the castle. For the next hour they did nothing but scramble through walls and occasionally trip over woodchips. Inside the walls of the castle was dark, musty. It smelled of dust, and there were massive support beams everywhere. Eventually a beam of light shone through from ahead, and the dust began to clear. Loud voices were having a yelled conversation in the room across from the intruding party.  
-O-

Hunter paced the room furiously, as Rachel cowered in the corner, fear grappling at her heart. "What is wrong with you?" he said in a voice so quiet and monotone, she would have liked it better if he had yelled. "Do you like humiliating me in front of the whole palace?" he cast her a dirty glance. Her heart began to accelerate and her breathing became erratic. A voice sounded from the door. "Rach… come and help with the dishes." Rachel's maid had appeared in the doorway. She always came on time. She always saved her. If Hunter wasn't cut off… Well, Rachel's bruises only just healed. "No." Said Hunter. "Do them yourself." His voice was icy, his glare unnerving. "I would like to have a chat with my wife." He grabbed the struggling Rachel by the colar of her dress and pulled her over to the back wall. Rachel was frozen. She could see the rage on his face and she crawled into a corner, trying to make herself as small as possible. Her heart was beating so loud she was afraid he would hear it. Rachel tried to make herself invisible. Her husband started towards her "So, I take care of you, and your kingdom and you this is how you repay me?" The first strike hit. She felt the slap before she saw his hand. Her cheek stung. A tear leaked out of Rachel's eye. Her husband laughed. His fist made contact with her eye. Then her nose. Then her mouth. She screamed. Her nose was bleeding. It felt like she was on fire. All Rachel could do was cower and crush herself into the corner, making herself as small as possible. He grabbed a vase brounght that down on her arm. She could feel glass in her skin. There was a massive gash down her forearm. It felt like someone was pulling barbed wire through it. "No maid to help you now." said Hunter. "Just you and me." Her eye was starting to swell. "H-H-Hunter…" she stammered. She had only screamed and wailed so far. She felt like every inch of her body ws being burnt. "P-please… stop….." she cried. A kick hit her stomach. She couldn't breathe. He slapped her around the neck. More tears leaked out of her eyes. He strolled over to the door. "Let that serve as a reminder to you. Do _not_ cross me."

-O-

Kurt was shocked. His jaw dropped, and he barely registered the twins pulling him into the large circular room, that served as the antechamber to the Queen's garden. A crumb of cake was shoved into his hands and the twins were already growing back to their regular size. Kurt shoved the cake into his mouth and began growing, until he was back to normal.  
"Please… leave. You will be killed." Whispered the Queen of Hearts.  
"Shhh… let us help." Said Jem, a look of pain flooding his face. Kurt had always thought Jem was more compassionate, had more empathy, then his brother, but it looked like he was physically feeling Rachel's pain.

Jem picked Rachel up and settled her on the small loveseat by the west wall. He pulled a pair of tweezers from his pocket and started picking out the glass, wincing slighly whenever he had to pick out a particuarly big bit. Kurt looked around for some bandages and settled for a length of linen, hung by the door to the garden, meant for cleaning your hands off as you left. He brought it back to Jem and his face fell as he saw Rachel's face. On his arival she had looked pretty, but now her face was beaten black and blue. Her hair had fallen off her face, revealing blood red heart over her eye. "It's a birthmark." Said Jayce, when he saw Kurt staring. "She and her sisters all have it. It shows what suit they are. The Hearts can manipulate peoples feelings, especially ones of love so that they can get what they want. The Spades never forget, and have a thirst for knowledge. The Clubs are excellent fighters, and are agile and strong. The Diamonds have the gift of cruel reality. They can cut themselves off from emotion to find what is best for their kingdom. " Jayce looked at Rachel, and then at Jem.  
"Is that all?" he asked his twin.  
"I think so." Jem replied. "I don't feel anything."  
Without speaking Jayce reached into his pocket and pulled out the small bag, which held the key. He gave it to the Queen and her eyes went wide. Her fumbling fingers grabbed the key and pressed it to her lips, breathing heavil, as if trying to inhale it. A slivery smoke started to leak from the heart at the top of the key, and it decended Rachel's throat, her eyes becoming more and more joyful than ever. When she was done she dropped the key and more smoke fled out of it, forming words in mid air;  
_The next think you have to seek,_

_In a dark place lies,_

_This thing, small and meek,_

_Is watched with slitted eyes,_

_She will never let him go,_

_So covertly you must,_

_Take him from her hidden home,_

_And earn his trust._

"The next riddle." Rachel croaked. "I can't believe that bastard is doing this."

Jem's face split into a smile and said, "Welcome back your Majesty."  
She mimicked his smile. "Of course you were planning on taking Blaine back with you, boys." She said, in a tone that said that she would get her way, no matter what.  
"Of course, Your Maj." Said Jayce, grinning. "Can you call him to 'tend to your wounds'?"  
"Ok, take the crescere parva and hide in the wall." They all took a sip from the small bottle and felt themselves shrink down. They ran to the crack in the wall, while Rachel rang a bell, and a voice filled the room. "What is it?" It was the King. "I need the White Rabbit. He is best at tending wounds." Replied Rachel, sounding scared and meek. A drawn out sigh swept through the room. "He is on his way." In fifteen seconds the White Rabbit was knocking on the door. He looked different. Thinner, and he was aready thin to begin with. There was a long, thin cut across his hairline and his jaw was bruised. His ears had spots of blood on them, and his waistcoat was stained red. "My Queen." Blaine bowed respectivly. "Sit down, please." Rachel sat, and as he started to clean the blood from her arm she whispered in his ear, "We're getting out of here." She slipped him the bottle that they had all drunk from. "Its crescre parva. Take a sip then go into that crack in the wall." Without hesitating he took a sip and handed the bottle back to Rachel, who drank the last drops, and bolted for the crack.

-O-

The Knave of Hearts, who had been in the garden through this whole ordeal had not even tried to stop them. His heart ached as he saw Blaine's bloodied, bruised face. He was the cause of that. He had tried to sneak Blaine some food and one of the servants told Hunter who, on listening Sebastian confessing that he gave Blaine the food, said that Blaine shouldn't have accepted the food, and made Sebastian beat was going to get punished for this, for letting them go. Maybe if he messed up the room and knocked himself out then he could say that he was overpowered. No. Hunter was already here, to find out why Blaine had taken so long. Anger flooded his features and Sebastian pretended to sleep as he stormed into the garden.  
"WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?" Hunter yelled furiosly.  
"Wha-?" said Sebastian, trying his best to sound groggy.  
"RACHEL AND THAT STUPID RABBIT HAVE ESCAPED AND YOU DID NOTHING TO STOP THEM!"  
"I swear my eyes were closed for a second an-"  
"I know you are lying, Knave. You watched them go. I saw you wondering about here not five minues ago." Sebastian's fists shook slightly, and he looked up in fear. "I had such hopes." Hunter said quietly, then a sharp pain hit his head and the world went black.

Later Sebastian woke in the dungeon. Sylvester was standing over him. '_The Executioner'_he thought bitterly. Sue was looking down at him with a slight smile playing on the edge of her lips. She held up a whip and he braced himself for the first blow. It stung more than he expected, and sliced the skin easily. The whip had shards of metal inside it. Desperate for a distraction he started counting the blows. Each slicing, stinging blow set his back on fire. He started begging her to stop somewhere around twenty, and the blows got harder, cutting deeper. A voice was talking at the back of his mind, whispering. "You want it to stop. You wont do it again."


	6. Chapter 6: Do We Ever Stop Running?

A/N: Ahh, finally uploaded. Been too busy watching Supernatural to write. Yeah that sucks. But here it is, along with seven. This is an okay chapter, I guess. The name is lame though.

Chapter Six: Do We Ever Stop Running?

They got out of the Castle with ease, the way they came, and once they got a fire going, slowly people started to drift off to sleep, until only Kurt and Blaine were left. Kurt's stomach fluttered as he looked up at the boy across from him, beautiful even when bruised and bloodied. Blaine looked at him kindly and said, "Would you like to hear a story?" Kurt nodded and Blaine began to speak. "One day, about four years ago a girl showed up in Wonderland. She was so happy and bubbly, and she had the ability to light up the sky with a few words so everybody called her the Princess of Sparks. She called the lights fireworks, although she claimed that they were nothing like the real thing. I had the honour of seeing her lights once. She would whisper a few words and sparks would fly from her hands, sailing into the sky until they were out of sight. After a couple of months getting to know Wonderland she decided she would help the Caterpillar in the Palace of Knowledge. It suited her perfectly. She had a different way of thinking. She wasn't stupid, nobody would claim that, but she didn't have conventional knowledge. She would sing while she worked, collecting manuscripts for the Caterpillar and writing as he dictated, trying her hardest to learn. About a year into assisting the Caterpillar the Cheshire Cat came to visit, since back then, she and the Caterpillar were good friends, and she was taken with the Princess of Sparks. It took them a while to admit it, but they loved each other. Some people say that Santana was the only person who knew the Princess' true name. Around that time, an evil was spreading around the Kingdom of Hearts, because of King Hunter's corrupt rule. He was going to see the Caterpillar and Wes had poisoned the drink he intended to serve Hunter, so that the Kingdom would be free of his rule. The Princess drank some. She died almost immediately. Her body rests in the White Graveyard, never decaying. Some say it is her magic that stops it from doing so, but others say her soul is still around preserving its remains. Anyway the Cheshire Cat took her revenge, and bound the Caterpillar to the Palace of Knowledge. He can never leave. She also took someone from him. The Dormouse. He and the Caterpillar were in love and the Cat wanted him to feel how she felt. The Dormouse is still there, hidden somewhere by Santana."  
"Wow. This Princess reminds me of a girl I used to know, but she's gone now, just disappeared one day." Kurt said thoughtfully.  
They talked long into the night, telling stories of their homes, and talking about themselves. Blaine was incredibly interested about the idea of singers being considered low on the social ladder, when they were revered here. Kurt lamented the tears in his shirt, and Blaine said that they should have grabbed some clothes at the castle. Blaine was telling Kurt a story about the Queen of Spades, but Kurt was really just looking at the younger boys eyes light up as he got to the good bit and how his impossibly long eyelashes fluttered when he yawned. He couldn't believe that this boy had been almost a stranger to him just that morning. They made easy conversation, and they fascinated each other. Blaine's eyes grew weary and a yawn escaped his mouth before he rested his head against the side of Kurt's legs and drifted into a soft sleep.

Kurt stroked through the other boy's hair, humming a soft song, as he brushed ove a smooth patch on Blaine's skin. That in itself wasn't all that impressive, but the smooth patch of skin was on the side of his head where his ears would be. It was silly, but it never occurred to Kurt that Blaine would not have ears on the side of his head, in addition to the pure white rabbit ears on top of his head. He softly stroked the White Rabbit's ears, as he would if Blaine was a rabbit, and, unconsciously, Blaine pressed into his hand, encouraging him.  
"Im pretty sure that's considered rape somewhere, Alice."  
Kurt jumped, and Blaine's head hit the floor. They both sprung to their feet, surprisingly alert for people who had been so close to sleep a second ago.  
"Santana." Said Blaine slowly. "Last I saw you were a cat up a tree. Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. I thought the Caterpillar had gotten you."  
"Like he could catch me. I come from the worst part of this place! And I still have a few tricks up my sleeve. " On finishing this sentence she transformed into a grey and purple cat and back.  
"Nice." Said Blaine smiling. "But why are you here?"  
Santana's face darkened slightly. "I came to warn you. The King is on his way. The Knave is with him, but," she paused for a moment, grappling for words. "He has changed."  
Blaine nodded, considering. "We won't outrun them." He stated plainly. "The horses are the fastest in the Kingdom, and they have allies in the sea."  
"Exactly. Which is why I offer you an alternative to the feel of Sylvester's axe on your necks. You can stay at my place for a bit."  
"What about Dee and Dum over there?" asked Blaine, concerned.  
"I can only take two. They can stay with the Hare. Leave them a note or something. If we don't leave now they'll be able to track us."  
Kurt, although feeling slightly herded, agreed that this was the best way, and scribbled a quick note to the Tweedles. The each took one of Santana's hands, and another picture began fading in. Wooden walls, with archways, and a large fireplace and large mismatched armchairs.  
"Where are we?" asked Kurt.  
"My place." Said Santana.  
"Yes, but where is your place?"  
"I don't really know right now. I think it's somewhere in Spades, but I'm not sure."  
"Come again?" said Blaine, looking confused.  
"I don't really know how to explain it. Let me think."  
"Stop if it starts to hurt." Laughed Blaine. Santana shot him a glare before continuing.  
"The door to my house moves. My house is in the veil between places. When I travel, in the moment between I disappear and appear, I am in the veil. I think where in Spades because my if we look through the window it'll show what we would see if we were where the door is right now, and I can see the Palace of Spades."

Kurt looked out the window and saw spires rising in the distance, behind the small village right outside the window. People bustled by, unaware of Kurt's staring, or just not bothered by it, some going to the bakery across the dirt road outside the window, some hurrying down the street to the tailor, but all of them walked with a purpose. Slowly Kurt realised they couldn't see him. He wasn't technically there. He watched for a little longer, before Santana interrupted.  
"Alice? Are you just gonna stand there?" Blaine looked at her, amused.  
"San, you never use Wonderland names, why are you calling him Ali- Do you even know his name?" Blaine asked, two seconds away from laughing.  
"No. He never told me, and honestly, I don't really care."  
"It's Kurt Hummel." Blaine laughed.  
"Whatever. Listen, Hobbit, you take Lady Hummel and go to the farthest room down the hall. You're sleeping there. Bathroom across from there. There's toothbrushes and stuff in the cupboard. Kitchen's just through that door (she motioned towards a door to their left.) and there's food in the pantry. I think that's all. So I gotta run. Don't break the veil." With that she disappeared, leaving a puff of purplish smoke.  
"_Lady Hummel?_" Kurt asked.  
"Don't take it personally. She's like that to everyone. Come on. Let's check out the house."

The rest of the house was a lot like the living room. High wooden walls nd mismatched furniture. This was true of every place but the spare room. The spare room had one large double bed and a big pink rug on the floor, as well as a dresser and vanity, both of which were painted white with green, vines crawling up the side. They weren't painted by an expert, and they weren't particularly good, but they gave the room character. This room had housed a joyful, almost childlike person. Blaine looked around the room sadly.  
"This must be where the Princess of Sparks slept. It fits her; she was so sweet, and childlike."  
"She reminds me of a girl I used to know." Said Kurt, smiling as he imagined Brittany seeing this room. She had always said that she wanted to paint her room like a forest.  
"Well, check the dresser. I get the feeling San knew we were going to need her."  
Sure enough there were a couple of shirts and pants in various sizes in the draws, along with a note reading, '_Here you go, ladies'. _Kurt smirked slightly as he grabbed a shirt and a pair of pants to replace his shredded and mud caked outfit and walked over to the bathroom. Grateful for the quiet and lack of companions, he sat on the edge of the tub, thinking. Sighing, he resigned to having a hot bath, but realised that there were no taps. There was a knock at the door and Blaine called out. "You might want some water." Kurt opened the door and Blaine entered with a large bucket of scalding water, then left, and brought back more water, this time cool. He poured them into the tub, while Kurt watched. It was odd, to have to get your own water for a bath, and Kurt didn't expect it. Blaine gave Kurt a friendly smile before exiting the room and closing the door behind him. Kurt quickly undressed and sank down into the bath, feeling the hot water relax him, as he closed his eyes. He thought of his father, and how worried e must be. He thought of Mercedes and Tina, and how that night they were supposed to meet up. He did miss his girls, and his Dad. Hell, he even missed Finn, thought he would never admit it. The water got cold fast in the metal tub, but Kurt didn't mind. He felt happier and rejuvenated after washing all the dirt and grime off. Feeling fresher and happier he dressed and walked out, the shirt feeling unfamiliar on his skin. It was loose, made of a light cloth, and the front was held together by a length of string threaded through the small slit at the top. The pants were simple. Plain brown, and not nearly as tight as anything Kurt would have picked from his wardrobe. He walked into the living room to find Blaine sitting by the fire, with some bread in his hands. Kurt sat opposite from him and Blaine tore some bread from the small roll, and handed it to him. Kurt ate it eagerly, and it tasted better than anything that he had eaten so far in this world.

Kurt pulled a book from the shelf and began to read, and not long after Santana appeared. She wore a short striped dress with three quarter length sleeves, and heels. She brushed her hair out of her face, and kurt noticed a smudge across her cheek, showing some odd colouring underneath.  
"Whats on your cheek?" Kurt inquired. Santana touched her cheek and grinned.  
"Oh that. Well I wanted in Clubs because of an unfortunate mishap with the Princess there and now I have to hide my _defining feature _as the wanted posters call them." She grabbed a towel and began to scrub the make-up from her face, revealing smoky purple stripes on her face, and the down right side of her body. "I am the Cheshire _Cat_ after all. I'm pretty sure Clubs gave up on catching me a while back, but it's a habit now, and not many people recognise me with them now."  
"Nice." Said Blaine. "They make you extra scary." This time when Santana smiled her teeth were pointed, and she burst into laughter at the shock on their faces.  
"Well that was fun, but I'm going out again." She said.  
"You came back just to show us your stipes?" said Kurt, raising an eyebrow.  
"I came back to check if you had broken the veil yet and found the food." corrected Santana, before vanishing.  
Blaine's face lost its joking façade, and he looked slightly worried. He grabbed Kurt and pulled him into the kitchen before whispering quickly, "I think what we have to find is here."  
Kurt looked confused, but Blaine had grabbed a piece of paper and started to draw a very bad sketch of a door, then a plus sign, then a mouse.  
"The dormouse." Said Kurt.  
"Yes." Blaine whispered. "I told you the he's still alive. We _have_ to look, I _have _to find him." As he said the last sentence, his eyes grew misty, and Kurt put an arm around his friend. "He- He's my oldest friend, and I promised I'd find him." whispered Blaine.  
"Then we will." Said Kurt.

They split up, agreeing to meet at Santana's room in half an hour. They would check that room together. After extensive search of his rooms and finding nothing, Kurt met Blaine at Santana's room, only to find that he had found nothing either. Kurt looked nervously into the Cheshire Cat's room, and drew n a breath as they stepped through the doorway. A large double bed sat in the middle and a vanity was situated across the room from there. Pinctures adorned the room, some professional and perfect, of sceneries and people, but some were merely crayon drawings.  
"This looks like you." Blaine pointed to one. It was of a boy with coiffed hair and black skinny jeans sitting with an Asian girl with a blue streak in her hair. Kurt's eyes began to tear up as he thought of his friends.  
"Couldn't be." He muttered, looking back at Blaine. Blaine's ears were upright and alert, listening for any kind of sound. They twitched in the direction of the wardrobe, and both Kurt and Blaine bolted into it. It was large, fitting both of them easily. A scratching sound reached their ears, and Blaine started feeling the walls, looking for some kind of latch. He found it. Hidden at the back, behind a stack of coats and dresses was a small latch. Blaine unlatched it and the wall swung inward.

The room was small and circular, and in the middle, one leg chained to the bed, sat a man who looked about nineteen. He had dark skin and eyes, and a soft face. Although he didn't look beaten, or had done by, he had the air of a man who was an empty shell. He stared at the intruders with blank eyes. Blaine's eyes filled with tears as he whispered, "David… We thoug- I thought I'd never see you again." David stared at Blaine and something clicked inside his head. He stared into the eyes of his best friend, and started trying to make his way over, stopped by chain around his foot.  
"Blaine." He said, quietly. "I thought you guys had stopped looking." He looked as though he had a question, but was scared to know the answer. "How- how's Wes?" he asked, fearfully.  
"She bound him to the Castle of Knowledge, but he has never stopped trying to find you." said Blaine. "He's fine. Do you know where she keeps the keys?" he asked.  
"Yes, she carries them around with her." replied David.  
"Hmm. Kurt, make sure David's okay. I'll be back." Said Blaine, before running off.

David studied Kurt curiously. "Are you Alice?" he asked. Kurt sighed. Would everybody know him as that?  
"Yes." He answered.  
"But you prefer Kurt?"  
"Yes."  
"What are you, to Blaine?"  
This question struck Kurt as odd. "We're friends." He was about to elaborate when Blaine walked back in with a large butcher's knife.  
"Woah, man, you'd better not be thinking about cutting off my foot, 'cause that's not going to happen." Said David, looking slightly scared. Blaine rolled his eyes and jammed the knife into one of the chain links, and began to pry it open. The link began to give and slowly the gap got wider. After about ten minuted of pushing the link open, David was free. With panicked glances at each other, they ran for the door. As they reached it a pained howl echoed through the house. Santana had come home. The trio broke into a run and as Kurt's feet hit the ground a voice whispered in his head, "Don't you remember what happened to the last person who _stole _from me?"


	7. Chapter 7: Back to the Castle

Chapter Seven: Back to the Castle

A/N: SHORTY! OH WHAT A FILLER, MARCHHATTER! (Imagine that to the tune of the Toyota add) Yeah I'm lame as. So this is only about 1,100 words, so it's a short filler chapter, because I have to give how I'm going to write the next chapter a _lot_ of thought. I've added stuff that has killed how I originally planned the next chapter to go (BAD HATTER!) So now, while blasting Glee's version of Cough Syrup, I am trying to re-write my next five chapter plans. Anyway, regardless I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Kurt didn't know when the decision was made to go to the Castle of Knowledge, but before they knew it they were at the door that he and the Tweedles had escaped through before. David walked soundlessly as he checked ahead of them for dragonflies, but the nest was vacated. David always seemed to walk on the balls of his feet, making as little noise as possible. When he spoke his voice was quiet, but not soft. As they reached the door into the castle, the Caterpillar's voice boomed through the small passageway.  
"WHO ARE YOU?"  
Blaine sighed and answered, "The White Rabbit, and Alice, bringing the Dormouse." There was a slight squeak and a sob, as the door swung open. Wes stood in the door frame, looking wild.  
"If this is a joke I will _skin _all of-" Wes begun.  
"It's not." Said Blaine, cutting Wes off. David moved out of the shadows, tears falling from his eyes as he ran forward and embrace the dumbstruck Caterpillar. Wes was shaking as he wrapped his arms around David, his eyes darting from his love's face to the two boys in the cold passageway.  
"Well… come in." Wes said, his voice shaking. Kurt followed the Caterpillar into the Great Library, and a cup of tea and some cake was presented to him by a mushroom. Kurt raised the cup to his lips, taking a sip from the barely warm tea, as Wes began talk.  
"I- I- just… how?" he stuttered.  
"It's not often I see you at a loss for words." said David quietly. Wes shot him a glare, which softened into a fond smile.  
"Um, well, Santana came to help us and we figured that her place was the safest place for Davey, here, so we found him and _ran_." replied Blaine.  
"Well, my other guests will be glad you're okay." said Wes as Rachel came bursting into the library.  
"YOU SCRUFFY, HORRIBLE, DISGUSTING EXCUSE FOR A RABBIT, WHERE IN THE KINGDOM OF CARDS DID YOU GO?" she screeched. Blaine's eyes widened as Rachel grabbed the, now cold, tea and threw it in his face.  
"Rachel, calm down!" said Jem, who was walking into the library.  
"Yeah, you're gonna go grey before your time." Added Jayce, always close behind.  
"And then you won't be half as pretty."  
"And you'll look twice as old."  
Rachel looked as though she was about to tear her hair out. And Wes gave her a biscuit and sat her down, before whispering to the two stunned newcomers, "She's been trying to keep those two in check by herself all week, you can't blame her."  
Kurt and Blaine shared a confused look.  
"Week? We were only gone two days." said Kurt.  
"No, its been a week." Rachel insisted, and David, volunteering conversation for the first time, began to explain, in his soft voice.  
"It was the veil. Time is odd there. The time lapse is unpredictable. One day there can be anywhere from two minutes to two months outside."  
"Dave, how do you know this?" asked Blaine.  
David began telling them about how Santana talked in her sleep and how he had sensitive hearing, which flowed into discussing all the things Santana said in her sleep. They all talked for hours before Kurt began to feel drowsy, his head dropping onto Blaine's shoulder. His eyes started drooping and Blaine helped him up, leading the exhausted boy to a bedroom, before wishing him goodnight, and heading back to the library. Kurt's eyes dropped and the familiar feeling of sleep washed over him.

_Kurt watched curiously, as Blaine chased the Knave around an oak tree singing, "Round and round the mulberry bush the rabbit chased the weasel, the rabbit thought it was all good fun, then _pop_ went the weasel!" On the 'pop' Sebastian changed. He looked the same, save for a new scar over his eye, but he looked different too. He looked meaner, and angrier, he looked as if all the happiness had been drained from him. He turned around to face Blaine, and began to chase him back, with a murderous look in his eyes. He caught Blaine and with a single swipe of his sword, stabbed him through the heart. _

_Red. Blood. So much blood. Kurt was going to be sick. There was an ache in his chest, and it felt as though he had been stabbed as well. Kurt fell to his knees tears streaming from his eyes as the Knave walked towards him. Fear began to accumulate in Kurt's heart, and head, fogging his thoughts and strangling all other emotions.  
"No, Alice, I can't kill you yet." He said bitterly. "But I have a message for you.  
Stand at the way to your heart's desire  
Or build your way to your friend's pyre  
Choose the right path and put to sleep,  
The forest of Witches Teeth."_

Kurt awoke with a start, sweat pouring down his face. He reached for a towel, wiping at his face, heart beating fast at his dream. Was it just a dream, or was it something more? He looked out the window at the perpetual dark outside, and then to the sky, which shed a little light on the deep ravine, and was his only source of hope. The sun, which forever rose and set, which was constant as it was in his own world. Kurt wondered if it was the same sun that fell on this world, and rose in his. A tear slipped down Kurt's cheek as he thought of his father, watching this sun rise, waiting for him to come home. Would he ever go home? Would he ever beat this sadistic king, or get close to winning this terrible game? A hole ate its way into Kurt's heart and he soon found himself sobbing. Tears fell from his eyes, his heart aching, until the doors of his room burst open, and there stood Rachel, the unbroken Queen. The queen, who, despite everything she had been through had held strong. The queen, so prim and proper, who looked as though she had not a soft side, fell to her knees, and brought Kurt into her embrace, whispering words of comfort, and crying herself. She knew how it felt, to not see your family, to be cut off from everything you loved. She told Kurt that he would see his family again, and that while her heart was trapped, she was a prisoner in her own mind. She couldn't feel, but she felt so much. In her mind she would cry, but her body remained emotionless. She knew how Kurt was feeling, and Kurt finally giving in to the blackness pushing at his thoughts, cried himself to sleep on her shoulder.


	8. Chapter 8: A Wretched Smile

Chapter Eight: A Wretched Smile

A/N: Another shortie. It's about three pages, but I felt I should update, and I don't want to mess up my chapter plans again, by putting in things that happen in other chapters.

Santana paced around her house, screeching at nobody in particular. She was furious. She wanted to _kill_ to stupid thieves, and she would, but she didn't know where they'd holed up. The tracking charm that she had placed on them had become ineffective after they had gone through the veil, a very undesirable effect of messing with space and time. The Cheshire Cat passed the room that Kurt had slept in and she stopped her screaming to stare at the Princess of Sparks' old room. It seemed an eternity ago that Santana had sat at the edge of that bed, watching her girlfriend paint the room, which she claimed was to dull. Santana stood in the doorway, remembering _that day._ She had told the Princess that she should go and see Wes, whom she had been missing for ages. It was Santana's fault she was even there. It was Santana who had said that there were drinks in the kitchen, and Santana was who, essentially, stole her life. A single tear leaked out of her eye and as it splashed to the floor, sizzled and ate its way through the floorboards. Even her tears were poisonous. As she thought of her old friend a familiar sensation of being pulled from the room hit her. The air choked her as she screamed, tugging against the force. Her heart thudded unevenly as the scenery changed and she was back in a place she had sworn never to return to.

_She could barely remember where she had been the past few hours, but that was normal. A girl, twelve years old, though she looked six, ran from house to house, taking valuables and food. By this time she had learnt to wear a scarf over the stripes down the side of her face, her distinguishing features. She had always been a thief. How else does one get by without family? She was one of the Blackouts; a group of thieves who dominated the streets of Clover. They had called her the Cheshire Cat, and given her the name Santana, after the woman who had founded them. She kept running, the Playing Cards were on her tail. She was almost at their hideout when he grabbed her. At the time she had thought he was quite handsome. He had rescued her from the soldiers. She hid behind him, while the Cards ran past, but when she tuned to thank him, he had grabbed her arm and thrown a Crystal. She was scared. The only people who owned Crystals were thieves, murderers and royalty, none of which she wanted to meet. The only thieves she associated herself with here the Blackouts, and they were one of the friendlier groups. She knew thieves and murderers would kill her, and royalty would imprison her. Santana gasped as she saw the high towers of the Palace of Hearts. She struggled and tried to vanish, but it was a skill she hadn't mastered yet. He grinned at her evilly, dragging her to the Palace._

_She tried to scream, but no sound came out. The Cheshire Cat had hears that there were cells under the Palace of Hearts, unbeknownst to the Queen. She was already getting sick then. The man dragged her into a side entrance to the Palace, that led straight to the cells. She couldn't believe that the Queen didn't know about this. As she was getting kicked into a cell, she mustered up the courage to talk to her captor.__  
"Who are you?" She asked, voice shaking. He flashed a wicked smile before answering her.  
"Hunter Clarington."_

_-O-_

_A searing pain in her collarbone shocked Santana from her sleep. She looked down to see a heart branded into her skin. Hunter looked bored.  
"That will stop you from leaving." He said, voice monotone._

_-O-_

_She worked for him until she was fifteen, assassinating, stealing, and being grateful for the small scraps of food she was given. All this time she had been looking for a way to get out. The brand controlled where she went, and when she came back. Hunter would summon her and she would feel herself slipping from where she was and find herself in front of him. If she didn't do what he told her, the brand would burn until she couldn't take it anymore and did as she was told. However one fateful day she was sent to kill a man who called himself the Mad Hatter. When she saw him, she knew who he was instantly. He had lived in Clover for a while, and had made the most beautiful clothes. He had always been kind to her. She couldn't kill this man. The moment she thought this the dull burn started. She ran to his house and banged on the door, screaming as the fire spread through her body. When Nick answered, he immeadiatly brought her in, whispered a couple of words and the pain went away._

_He told her the spell that, if said every night, would keep her from_his_clutches. As she thanked him, Nick smiled and brought her into a warm hug, and for the first time in a long time she felt safe._

-O-

"You hid for a long time, Chesh." Santana grimaced at her nickname coming from his lips.  
"_Bastardo_." She spat. "If I had been smarter, you would never had found me." Hunter's lips twisted into a sadistic smile. He never aged.  
"Yes, but your little bit of faerie magic won't work now. I have you now."

-O-

Kurt screamed as Santana materialised in front of him, and it wasn't because he thought she was going to kill him. Her face was mutilated, her mouth sewn together, like those of the Playing Cards. His scream had awoken Rachel, who stood alert in front of him, however on seeing Santana, her expression turned from protectiveness to sadness. She touched Santana's cheek and a tear rolled down, missing Rachel's hand, but scorching the marble floor. She cast a look at the door, but suddenly she was doubled over in pain, the heart shaped brand on her collarbone lighting up red, and pulsing. More tears welling in her eyes she held her hands out to the both of them and Rachel called out for the Tweedles, who burst through the door, White Rabbit in tow. Blaine's eyes bulged and he ran to Kurt, taking his arm protectively, but Jayce immeadiatly walked over to Santana and tapped her cheek twice, Jem following the suit. It was an old sign of respect in Wonderland, seldom used anymore, but intended for those who had been through great suffering. Blaine's ears were standing on end, instead of flopping down on to his head like usual and he looked wary when Santana offered them her hands. Regardless they all grabbed Santana's arms, and felt themselves slipping from the room.

While they were in the veil, partly in one place, partly in the other, Sebastian's voice rang out.

"_Stand at the way to your heart's desire  
Or build your way to your friend's pyre  
Choose the right path and put to sleep,  
The forest of Witches Teeth."_

They were in a desolate forest of sorts. There were dead trees everywhere, black some holding a handful of leaves on their sad branches. Scattered around the trees were hundreds of doors, all partially burnt and scratched, as if they had been attached by vandals with nothing to write. They stood in front of three particular doors, and Santana's voice filled the air.  
"One will take you forward, one will take you back, and one will take you where you need to go."  
"The Paths." He heard Rachel whisper, and when he turned to confront Santana, she was gone. The poem was still echoing in Kurt's head. He stood, confused. It was obvious they had to choose a door, but which one? To his immense surprise, the twins were grinning madly, staring at each other.  
"You'd think he doesn't know what goes on in his own kingdom!" Laughed Jem.  
"Yeah, no way he thought we were going to be here." Jayce said. "The Tweedle Twins, Kings of the Paths!" Kurt, Blaine and Rachel exchanged confused looks, and Jayce explained.  
"When we were little-" he began.  
"Fifty years or so ago!" laughed Jayce  
"We used the Paths to get everywhere!"  
"And nobody every figured out our trick!" It took Kurt a couple of seconds o process this. He understood the Paths just fine, it was the '50 years or so ago!' that confused him.  
"Fifty years? You can't be that old." He said slowly. Blaine smiled at him.  
"They don't age as quickly as the rest of us. For them, being little is when they were seventeen, and in an eight year old's body."  
"What about when they were babies? How did they deal?"  
"We grew normally until we were about four." Said Jem. "Same with San." Kurt was even more confused.  
"Santana? How old is she?"  
"Like forty-something. She ages around the same rate as us."  
"Okay. Great." So time was just another thing that was messed up here. "How do we get to... where are we going?"  
"Into the mouth of the beast." Grimaced Rachel. "It's an impossible mission. So many people have tried to put the forest of Witch's Teeth to sleep and they all died. So what's the secret?" Rachel's voice brightened.  
"Oh, you can hear what's going on, on the other side." Said Jayce. "So we got taken to these doors." He pointed to the three doors they had appeared in front of. "One will take us back, I think that means to the Palace of Hearts. One will take up forward. No idea about that. And one will take us where we need to go. So to the Forest of Witch's Teeth. Everybody, put your ear to a door, and let's go!" Kurt and Rachel leant against the middle door, while Blaine listened to the door to their right, and Jayce and Jem pressed their ears to the door to his left. The more he concentrated the more he could hear. There was a swishing of wind, and a ruffling of leaves, then a sweet high voice hit his ears.  
_"Hey Burt! Look! Kurtie did my hair!"_ Anna's voice hit him like a bullet. He froze, then called out,  
"Anna! Dad! " but just as he was about to run through the door, Rachel grabbed his arm.  
"I know what it means." She whispered. "'One door will take you ahead' Way ahead. It will take you home. But that's cheating. Blaine will die, and Hunter will go to your world and take you back anyway." Tears fell to the ground and Kurt cried,  
"But my Dad! Finn!" It was like his heart was being wrenched from his chest as his tears fell to the ground. Rachel nodded.  
"Time is different here Kurt. When you go back it will be the same time as it was when you left. The door is just replaying the last thing you hear there." Kurt vaguely remembered Anna saying that as he chased after Sebastian. He pressed his ear to the door, and his father's voice hit him.  
_"Nice one, kid. Why don't you go find him?"_

He kept his ear pressed to the door as it replayed that quick exchange over and over, until Blaine came over, and said, "It's this one. I can hear her cackling." They all stood and stared at the door for a long while before taking each other's hands, and walking through.


	9. Chapter 9: Lullaby

A/N: Shortie again! I feel kinda bad, uploading short chapters, but I want to end each chapter after a new phase of the game (I just lost the game) and yeah. BUT THE CHAPTERS WILL GET LONGER! PROMISE! Psychic hugs to followers and kisses for reviewers!

The trees were scratched and mutilated, leafless, their twisting trunks tapering out into thin twigs, like hands clutching at the air. An eerie cackling filled the air, high, like a child's voice, and it had an insane edge to it, an unreserved sadistic tone that set Kurt's teeth on edge. They sat for a few minutes, feeling lethargic and slightly ill, which Jem claimed was an effect of being in this sick environment. A horrid stench wafted around them, and Rachel gagged, whispering to Kurt, "Rotting bones. We shouldn't go much further tonight." There was a general consensus to Rachel's plan, and Jem stayed up just long enough to say to Kurt, "This whole forest is cursed. The witch's spirit broke this place." Slowly everybody dropped off to sleep.

Kurt sat with Blaine, the shorter boy's head in his lap, not as tired as the rest of them seemed to be. Suddenly Blaine twitched violently in Kurt's hands, and a layer of sweat coated his forehead. He went rigid, and the curled close to Kurt, whispering something unintelligible. "Blaine." Kurt whispered soothingly. "Blaine, shhh. Wake up." Blaine jerked out of Kurt's arms, slapping him in the process. He stood alert, arms up in a gesture of defence. Kurt held his hand to his stinging cheek, and Blaine immeadiatly kneeled down, his eyes full of sympathy, although fear caused the fur on his ears to stand on end. "In so sorry." He whispered, his voice catching. Kurt's expression switched from shock to sympathy in an instant. "What were you dreaming of?" he asked cautiously, not wanting to push Blaine into telling him. The White Rabbit, relaxed slightly, and crawled into the taller boys arms again.  
"My brother." He said. "I haven't seen him in a long time" Kurt's breath stopped for a second, as he thought of Finn. "He wasn't a perfect brother." Blaine said. "But… I miss him."  
"What happened?" Kurt asked, arms sliding around the Rabbit's stomach, hugging him from behind.  
"Hunter Clarington happened. When I was little, he came round and told Cooper he had unbridled talent, and like a fool Coop believed him. Hunter said that Cooper could be big, known throughout the kingdoms, but he... did something to him. Like Santana. Cooper was a strategist, he helped the King," Blaine spat the word. "Gain control of everything. He's still in the castle somewhere. "  
"Oh." Kurt said, his voice faltering. "What about the rest of your family?" Blaine's eyes went glassy, and he waited a moment before answering Kurt

-O-

_"BLAINE DEVON ANDERSON GET YOUR ASS IN HERE!" Blaine shuddered at his father's words, and tried not to think about what would come of them. He walked carefully into the room, not looking at anything for too long. "What are these?" said Richard Anderson. His teeth were slightly yellowing, and he glowered down at his son, through thin wired glasses. His outstretched had held a gold watch and a few pieces of jewellery, including a large diamond pendant. "I'm sorry!" Blaine stuttered. "It's all I could grab today." Anderson looked down at his seven year old son, and spat. "Liar. Your keeping some of it aren't you?" Blaine's heart raced. He had only kept a pair of earrings, and Mummy needed something to pay for her medicine. Surely Papa wouldn't hit him, once he explai- WHACK. Blaine's world went black. He opened his eyes and white spots danced across his vision. A kick to his chest, and suddenly it was like his ribcage had exploded, the throbbing pain caused him to scream out, which only made his father beat him more. He knew his rib was broken, and possibly his nose as well. His father left the room, taking the earrings from Blaine's pocket, and all Blaine heard before he passed out was his mother scream._

"They're not around anymore."

-O-

"Kurt." Blaine had been silent for several minutes now, and Kurt was slightly surprised when he spoke.  
"Yeah?"  
"Sing for me?" Kurt smiled, pulling Blaine's head into his lap, and leaning back against a rock.  
"Of course.

_"I remember tears streaming down your face when I said I'll never let you go,  
When all their shadows almost killed your light,  
I remember you said, 'Don't leave me here alone',  
But all that's dead and gone and passed tonight."_

Blaine's eyes drooped, and Kurt smiled down at him, oblivious to the world around him.

_"Just close your eyes, the sun is going down,  
You'll be alright, no-one can hurt you now,  
Come morning light, you and I'll be safe and sound."_

The trees around Kurt shuddered, and the incessant cackling stopped. It seemed even the forest was listening.

_"Don't you dare look out your window, darling everything's on fire,  
The war outside out door keeps waging on,  
Hold on to this lullaby, even when the music's gone, gone."_

Slowly, Rachel came too, and sat, listening to Kurt sing, the drowsy feeling leaving her body, and her mind becoming less cloudy. She noticed the trees. The stench in the air was being replaced with the smell of snow, and the cackling started sounding tired. It stopped all together, but Kurt kept singing, oblivious. _A lullaby_, Rachel thought. _ A lullaby to put a spirit to sleep._

_"Just close your eyes, you'll be alright.  
Come morning light, you and I'll be safe and sound."_

A figure appeared in the fire, gaunt and pale-faced. Her cheeks were hollow, and her hair hung in wet stands around her face. She lifted her head, to reveal eyeless sockets, which her skin had healed over. Her white dress was torn and tattered and her fingernails bloody. She let out a high, wailing note, in the tune Kurt had been singing, but with none of his talent. As the note got higher, she seemed to be incinerating, slowly, and her note became a scream of pain, the song eating her away.

The group stared, in awe, at the fire, until long after the apparition had disappeared. It was amazing to think that Kurt had a voice so pure that it could put an angry spirit to rest. There was no conversation before they all went to sleep, slowly dropping off one be one. Kurt was still plagued with nightmares- the Knave had seen to that, but tonight they were different.

_The Knave walked in slow circles around the Queen of Hearts, who looked even worse than she did when she was with Hunter, but instead of the joy that usually painted Sebastian's face when he tortured Kurt's friends in front of him, there was a deep sorrow in his eyes. He looked at Kurt, tears welling in his eyes and he whispered, "You have to win, Alice." He whispered. "Save him." Suddenly, Blaine was there too, bound to a chair, tired eyes looking up at Kurt, bruises prominent on his skin, so pale with sickness and hunger. Then Kurt was back at the mouth of the rabbit hole, and Sebastian was sitting on the other side, his eyes sad. Kurt crawled forward, and the Knave repeated the words he had spoken, when Kurt had first met him, before falling down the rabbit hole.  
"I'm sorry, Alice."_


	10. Chapter 10: An Unlikely Companion

Chapter Ten: An Unlikely Companion

When they woke up the next morning they noticed a note, right where the girl had burnt, scorched into the rock.

Beauty to rival Spade' s herself,  
Locked away in a prison of green,  
Hidden in her secret shelf,  
A thing that few eyes have seen,  
The Rose of Knowledge.

As they read this, Jayce fell onto his back with a sigh of exasperation.  
"How the _hell_ do we get into Spades' castle?' he said, annoyed. Rachel simply rolled her eyes.  
"Ellabeth is my sister. All we have to is request sanctuary." They all looked at her.  
"What?" asked Rachel. Jem stared at her for a few seconds before answering.  
"Spades' name is Ellabeth?" he said in amazement.  
"Well, no. It's really Eliza Bethany, but that's such a mouthful, and she's the oldest, so when we were all little we just called her Ellabeth. " Rachel replies, with a slight smile at the memories.  
"What do you mean by we?" said Jem, interestedly.  
"I swear, you're as dim as your brother." Said Rachel, looking at them as if they were idiots. "I have _three _sisters." Jayce looked crushed.  
"My whole life is a lie." He whispered, eyes wide.

There was a small argument about how they would get to Spade's kingdom in the first place, as Rachel wanted to take a carriage, while Jem thought it was more sensible to walk, sticking to back roads and trekking through forest. Blaine was impartial, and Jayce was sick of walking and wanted to go with Rachel. Jem persisted until Kurt put his foot down and said that if they started walking he would stay behind with Rachel and they would catch a carriage by themselves.

They waited by the road for Rachel to call for a carriage. The Queen of Hearts walked into the middle of the road, whistled a tune and threw a coin into the air. The copper coin grew, morphing into a bronze carriage and set of metal horses. The horses were beautiful. They were made entirely of clockwork, and when they moved they made a faint ticking noise. Their eyes were glass balls in assorted colours, and they appeared not to be tethered to the carriage, though then the moved it rocked ever so slightly. Kurt touched the first horse and it leaned into his touch, making an odd purring sound as he stroked it. Kurt looked at it front on and found that the purring was the horse's tongue, all the gears grinding against each other.

Behind him everybody was walking into the carriage, which was made of shining bronze, and had flowers etched into the side. The seats inside were metal, but not at all uncomfortable. Once they were in, Rachel said, "To the Queen of Spade's castle, please." And the horses moved. As the carriage pushed forward, Kurt looked at Jayce, asking him to say why the carriage was moving and he simply waved his hand, eyes widening and whispered, "Magic." Before bursting into laughter. Kurt rolled his eyes, before turning to the road. The world around him was a blur, a if they were moving extremely fast, though they were moving at a comfortable rocking pace. If Kurt closed his eyes, he could imagine he was little and he and his mum were at the fair and on the pony ride. It hadn't been two minutes, when Blaine nudged him from his daydream.  
"Kurt, come on. We're here. "

When Kurt opened his eyes his head started spinning. He was in the middle of a stone city, all white marble and sandstone. The palace reminded him of when Sam had made him watch Lord of the Rings. There was a spade shaped hole in the wall, by way of a gate and, as they entered, Kurt spotted two children running around the grounds. They ran towards the carriage laughing.  
"Aunty Rach!" they yelled.

The two were blonde, with fair skin, the girl had one blue eye, and one green, and they looked about four. The boy looked up at Kurt as the carriage slowed and Kurt was stunned, looking at his dark purple eyes. He grinned up at Kurt and reached his arms out. Blaine stepped in front of Kurt and picked up the boy, walking out with him. He pouted, and pointed at Kurt, who was walking out of the carriage. Blaine smiled and handed him over. He perked up the moment he was in Kurt's arms.  
"What's your name?" Kurt asked. The boy looked incredulously at Kurt.  
"You don't know my name?" he asked, looking confused. "But I'm Alex!" Rachel laughed at Alex and walked over to say hello. They all stood in the courtyard of the castle, and the little girl held her arms out to Rachel. Rachel looked at them disparagingly.  
"It's like they've never down put down in their life." She said, kissing the top of the girls head. "And knowing my sister, they haven't. This is Katélina, and that is _Prince _Alexander." Alex looked happily up at Kurt and stared into his eyes.  
"You're pretty." He said, snuggling into him, his eyes drooping. "Blue eyes." Kurt looked back towards the carriage, to see that it had disappeared, leaving their bags behind. Three playing cards came out. They looked so different than the one in the Palace of Hearts , for a moment, Kurt stood speechless. They wore black masks, and had white eyes, like a man from a comic book. When one, a nine, opened its mouth to speak, its voice was genderless, and sounded like church bells.  
"The sister has come back!  
Our hearts fill with joy!  
But the one thing you lack,  
Is a little girl or boy."  
Rachel simply rolled her eyes, and said back,  
"I can't deal with my kingdom, now you want a brat?  
Mind you own business, and leave me, you prat."  
The card grinned at her, and nine and its companions gathered their bags,a nd led them to the castle.  
"Why was it talking about you having kids?" asked Kurt in an undertone.  
"They hassle me about it whenever I come here. Ever since Ella had hers. It's a joke."

At that point a beautiful woman burst through the doors of the palace. She had long blonde hair, twisted up above her head, and wore a long sleeved dress, which fanned out behind her, in shades of black and white. Her face was delicate, a Victorian beauty, but instead of the traditional blue, present in these ladies, her irises were pitch black. Over one of her eyes, sat the family birthmark, hers, much like Rachel's, but with a triangle fanning out to her hairline. She looked about twenty and her children smiled at her as she ran towards them. She held Rachel's face I her hands, and studied her, before pulling her little sister into a hug. Tears flooded Rachel's eyes and she clung to her niece and sister, whispering, "I missed you." Ella's eyes filled with tears as she looked at her sisters face, then her chest, where the key hung on a fine gold chain.

The sisters disappeared as the got into the castle, and Alex wouldn't leave Kurt's side. He was tired, but he was determined to always be with Kurt. He constantly stared at Kurt's eyes. Alex pulled his new companion to the library, where Kurt sat, as the boy went to find a book. Kurt looked around the library, breath stilling. The shelves reached to the roof and high arched windows had cushions of the sills. There were ladders, and the spiral staircase around the circular room had books filling it. The roof was a dome, with stained glass at the top, casting brightly coloured light around the room.

Alex returned, and handed Kurt a book, stretching on his tiptoes, to give Kurt a kiss on the cheek, before curling up in the other side of the cushion. Kurt began,  
"Once upon a time, there was a dragon. His name was Delfos, and he sat on his mountains of treasure, content. He had acquired the treasures easily, as he had a band of worshippers that were spread about the land, and they brought him tribute. His followers were dwindling, but this dragon did not mind. He did not need followers to be happy, his gold was enough to keep him from harming people. Eventually only one follower remained, a young boy, by the name of Alek. Every month he brought a single golden coin to that dragons lair, then left.

"One month the dragon had begun to get lonely, for not many would talk to a dragon, for fear of being killed, so when Alek came, the dragon asked, 'Will you stay and talk?' Alek smiled, and nodded, climbing the treasure mountains to sit with Delfos. The dragon was knowledgeable, and wise, and he enjoyed talking to this young boy, and hearing his ideas and thoughts. After two days of talking and laughing Alek asked if he might accompany Delfos for longer.

"'As long as you like.' Replied Delfos, happy. He knew one day the boy must leave him, but he knew it was enough for him, simply to have company while he could. He took the boy on his back and the flew everywhere, enjoying each other. One day, many years later, the boy got wind that his mother was ill, so he urged Delfos to fly to his hometown. The townspeople, on seeing a dragon flying, carrying a boy, shot Delfos down. Alek cried, and suffered the loss of his friend, and Delfos, with his last moments of life, bonded his essence to the boy's. From then, the boy knew everything the dragon knew. The dragon had known he would be killed, but wanted to help. The boy took care of his mother until the poor woman died, then went back to Delfos' hall of treasure, contenting himself with his knowledge. He never returned of that village again, knowing that the place where his friend had been murdered, held no interest for him. He set out to better the lives of others, using his new knowledge and mind to converse with his friend, who would never truly leave him."

When Kurt finished, Alex was asleep, curled up in a patch of sun. Kurt picked the small boy up, leaving the book on the cushion. He walked the halls, Alex in his arms, looking for the young prince's room. He came to the royal wing, and found a white spade on a black door, and a black spade on a white door. The white spade had 'Alex' painted in black on it, and 'Prince" written above it in blue crayon. Kurt chuckled as he pushed the door open.

Alex's room was beautiful, full of furniture made of glass. His dresser had a mermaid on one side and a merman on the other. Kurt tucked Alex into his bed. The sheets were blue, as was most of the room. His walls had a beach on them, and Kurt smiled as he saw the stars painted onto the roof. It was dark and Kurt found his way to a guest room, two corridors down from the Royal Wing.

_Fear floods his body, the Castle of Spades is wrong. The tapestries lie, bloodied, on the floor and the portraits are ripped from their frames. Kurt runs down the hall, one word ripping through his mind. _Blaine. _He ran into the boy's room and found him, bound with barbed wire to the head of his bead. There are cuts littering his face, and blood trickles down his wrists, where the barbed wire stuck into them. He rushes forward and pulls the barbed wire free, ignoring the wire cutting into his fingers. E ties two bloodied pillows around the whimpering boy's wrists, and they race down the hall to the Tweedles. _

_Jem lays on the floor, motionless, as his twin stares at him, taking in his slit throat. Kurt and Blaine freeze in the doorway, and Jayce, snapping out of his trance, runs forward, weeping and clutching at his brother. Kurt feels a stabbing in his heart, only a fragment of what Jayce feels. There are soft footfalls a few halls down, and Blaine, ears pricking up, grabs Jayce, with a quick whisper, "We need to find Rachel._

_The trio burst into the throne room, hearts pounding, to see the Queen of Spades kneeling in forced submission in front of Hunter Clarrington, who is lounging in her throne. Rachel is bound and gagged, tossed in a corner, tears pouring from her face. Sue Sylvester stands over Spades, and draws an axe out of nowhere. _

_Kurt's scream echoes as her head hits the floor. _

Kurt woke up, sweating, and there was a scuffle at his door. He walked towards the door to find a note, hastily scribbled, in green ink, '_We do it today. Meet at the statue of Isabella the Kind._' Kurt pulled on a shirt and trousers, marvelling at the soft feeling of the loose pants, and the smooth fabric of the shirt. He quickly opened the door, and thanked whatever deity there is that it opened inwards, for there was a little figure sleeping outside the door. Kurt smiled affectionately, as he picked the young prince up and brought him into his room.

Propping him up on the bedhead, Kurt gently coaxed Alex awake.  
"I, uh, wha-?" said the tired boy, rubbing sleep from his eye.  
"Hey, you were sleeping outside my room." Said Kurt. Alex nodded.  
"I had a night scare, so I went to find Mama, but the castle led me to you. And you were screaming, but there was nobody else in the hall to hear you, and I tried to get in but the handle of the door is too high. So I waited outside." Kurt looked at the boy, slightly confused.  
"The castle _led you_?" he asked.  
"Yeah, same as it led you here. This is your room because the clothes are your size, and the room is what you like. She's so smart." Kurt was left more confused than when he started, but decided to leave t.  
"Yeah, I was having bed dreams too. You should go see your mum though. You could be sick form sleeping in the cold." Alex pouted.  
"Okay." He walked off, waving behind him.

As Kurt walked out, a quick glance out the window told him that it was at eleven, and he hurried down to the statue. It was situated in the middle of the garden, and their little party were seated around it, happily eating.  
"Kurt!" Rachel said. "We meant to wait for you, but you took forever."  
Jem threw a pillow at Kurt, for him to sit on, and Jayce handed him a tart. We they were finished, Kurt opened his mouth, to ask what they were going to do, but Rachel pressed her finger to her lips.  
"Were going to visit Sparks, and the Tweedles are going to look about the garden." She said, slowly. Kurt nodded, and Rachel, grabbing Kurt's arm, led him back towards the castle.

"Rach? How does the castle lead you places?" Kurt asked.  
"Oh, it's easy really. You see, all the doors in Wonderland are portals, and they can take you anywhere, but there's a very slim chance that they'll take you anywhere outside their structure, unless they don't like you. Basically the door figures out where you want to go, and takes you there. Sometimes it takes a few goes, though." They turned a few corners, going the way that seemed natural, and all of a sudden, they were in a hallway, leading to a glass sepulchre.

The doors swung open, and they stood at the foot of a bed. Looking at the body, Kurt noticed the lavender colour of the long dress, and the golden armbands that trailed from her wrist to her shoulders. The dress was strapless, and had intricate white embroidery. Blonde hair laid on her chest, and as he saw her face, Kurt uttered a single word, so soft that Rachel couldn't hear him.  
"Brittany."

Her eyes shot open, and she took a quick deep breath. As she sat up her eyes were wide, and she clutched her neck, gasping for air. Sparks shot from her hands, and the entire chamber was alight. Brittany lunged forward and pulled Kurt into a hug.  
"I missed you." She whispered. Kurt nodded, remembering when she went missing, two year ago. Salty tears fell into his friends hair, and he hugged her tighter.

"Sparks." There was a crash, and Jem rushed up and joined their hug, Jayce and Rachel joining a few seconds later. Jem quickly broke off as soon as he had joined, and said, "We have to get out of here." Rachel's eyes went wide and she grabbed Kurt's arm and ran. They managed to get through to the gate easily, but the gate sealed itself as they tried to run trough. A booming voice filled the air, striking terror into Kurt's heart.  
"This is my castle. You cannot turn it against me." It was Spades, but she was wrong. Her voice had lost the softness in her voice.

A troupe of cards stormed out, grabbing them, and taking Jayce's bag from his back, pulling a sapphire rose form it. They struggled, as they were dragged to the dungeons, trying to scream for help, but finding themselves voiceless. When they got thrown into the jail cell, they found Brittany in the neighbouring one, looking sour. Kurt crawled over to her, wary of the cards standing by the door.  
"What happened?" he asked.  
"Apparently 'Sparks was undeniably dead' so I must be an imposter." Kurt heard her sarcasm, but also the fear it masked, and he reached through the bars to grab her hand.

That day the Queen came down twice to interrogate them, and Rachel explained that the Rose was like a drug for Ella. When people tried to take it she went mad. The night was quiet, and Kurt was free of his dreams for once.

He was woken by a gasp. He looked through the bars to see Santana, frozen, staring at Brittany. She materialised into the cell, and shook Brittany lightly, waking her up. Her heart filled with joy as she saw Brittany stir, and she pulled her into her arms, pressing light kisses all over her face. She grabs Brittany's hand, getting ready to disappear, when a small, "Hello." Behind her sounded. In the doorway stood Alex, holding the Rose. He ran straight to Kurt, and the doors opened for him. He handed him to the Rose, and whispered, "I hope you don't hurt anymore." Then he ran off.

Brittany pulled Santana to the other cell, grabbing all her friends, and looking at the Cheshire Cat with pleading eyes. Santana merely rolled her eyes, and held out her hands, all past anger at them seeming to have evaporated. They all grabbed onto Santana's hands and arms, and the Castle of Spades started to fade.


End file.
